Brighton Beach Memoirs

The Willows Theatre draws yet again from the bubbly well of
the ubiquitous Neil Simon with Brighton Beach Memoirs,
the semi-autobiographical coming-of-age comedy about a teenage boy growing up
in a large family in Depression-era Brooklyn
and mooning over girls and baseball. Matthew Broderick starred in the Broadway
opening, 25 years ago next week, of this first installment of Simon's Eugene
Jerome trilogy (along with Biloxi
Blues and the more obscure Broadway Bound). Directed by producing artistic
director Richard Elliott, this production's Eugene is high school freshman David Beal,
already a six-time Willows veteran, in a cast with Cristina Anselmo,
Cindy Goldfield, and Val Hendrickson.

March 17 through April 20 at the Willows Theatre
(1975 Diamond Blvd., Concord).WillowsTheatre.org or 925-798-1300.